In this review

Interior

The interior layout, fit and finish

Driving position and dashboard

It's easy to get comfortable in the Tucson. There’s a wide range of seat adjustment and the steering column moves for both height and reach, so it takes no time to set it up. The seats are soft yet just about supportive enough to avoid inducing backache on longer trips, so few drivers should have any gripes.

Driver's seat height adjustment is standard across the range, as is a front armrest. If you move up to SE Nav trim, you get electrically-adjustable lumbar support as standard, which further improves comfort. Boosting the Tucson's ease of use are its sensibly placed and easily interpreted controls.

Visibility, parking sensors and cameras

The Hyundai Tucson, being fairly tall, gives you a good view of the road ahead. The view out of the side windows is generally good, too, although the front pillars can obscure your view at junctions. In the rear, the rising window line means shorter rear passengers don’t enjoy a great view.

Entry-level S Connect versions get a reversing camera as standard, while SE Nav comes with rear parking sensors and Premium adds front parking sensors to that. If you splash out on a top-spec Premium SE model, you'll also get a parking assistance system that aids parallel and bay parking.

Sat nav and infotainment

Even entry-level S Connect trim gets a 7.0in touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring so you can use your phone’s sat-nav apps on the car’s screen.

The bigger 8.0in touchscreen that you get with SE Nav models or above. It's quick to respond to presses and easy to use. Wheel-mounted audio and phone controls are standard across the range.

Quality

The Tucson is solidly and precisely built, but its interior is let down by the presence of too many hard and unappealing materials.

The dashboard, for example, is mostly made of solid, unyielding grey plastic. Lots of plastics lower down in the interior are easily marked, too – this isn't ideal for those intending to use the car as a family vehicle.

Higher-spec versions look and feel more upmarket inside, but rivals such as the Nissan Qashqai and Seat Ateca are still much classier.